Bars (Fourth Rotation) - 47.900 - A nightmare rotation for the Cyclones leads to a season low score.
1. Ceilia Maccani - 9.850 - Awesome routine. One of her highest Tkachev's of the year.
2. Melanie Tham - 8.525 - She took a hard fall soon after jumping onto the bar, but quickly got back up, only to almost immediately fall again. Very unfortunate break, but I'm sure this freshman will finish her career as a highly decorated gymnast.
3. Jasmine Thompson - 8.250 - Jasmine also fell, and Iowa State has to count a fall. Not how Iowa State wanted to finish the meet at all.
4. Nikki Dilbert - 9.775 - Great routine, slight step on landing, but should score well.
5. Katie Lasher - 9.850 - Fantastic routine. Great way to end her Big 12 career.
6. Janet Anson - 9.900 - Tremendous job on her handstands. Great routine, only a slight bobble upon landing her dismount.
Nebraska (Vault): 49.325 - I missed most of the vaulters, so it would be unfair to make an opinion. Score talks again.
Oklahoma (Beam): 48.825 - The Sooners made up for the tough time on bars here, but it wasn't enough to give K.J. Kindler her second Big 12 title in a row.
Missouri (Floor): 48.000 - The Tigers had to count a fall on floor which kept them from second place.
Final scores:
Nebraska: 196.475
Oklahoma: 195.325
Missouri: 194.450
Iowa State: 193.975 - season low
For how close all the teams were ranked coming in, they finished with much wider scoring gaps than I think anyone expected.
The Cyclones do have some good news on the individual side of things - Janet Anson tied for first with Michele Zabawa on bars and tied for second with Adrianne Perry on vault. She also tied for third on floor exercise and beam.
Emily Parsons of Nebraska won the all-around (39.650), with Anson finishing second (39.550. Oklahoma's Kiara Redmond placed third and Missouri's Adrianne Perry fourth.
In very exciting news, Megan Barnes was selected Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and Janet Anson was picked co-Big 12 Gymnast of the Year with Emily Parsons
Thanks for joining me. Check out my recap article in Monday's Daily.
Cody Saveraid
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Big 12's Third Rotation - Vault
Vault (Third Rotation) - 48.875 - Great vaults, but the Cyclones badly needed a 49.
1. Jasmine Thompson - 9.675 - Good routine, but she's had better this year.
2. Katie Sweetin - 9.100 - She fell on her butt upon landing. Iowa State absolutely can't have any more mistakes.
3. Nikki Dilbert- 9.675 - Excellent vault. Just what Iowa State needed. Criminally low score.
4. Katie Lasher - 9.800 - Fantastic vault. ISU's best thus far.
5. Megan Barnes - 9.825 - Excellent vault, one of the meet's best thus far. She's only competing on vault tonight because she's still dealing with a back injury.
6. Janet Anson - 9.900 - Tremendous, tremendous, tremendous vault. The last three vaults have been outstanding.
Nebraska (Floor): 48.925 - The Huskers looked very strong on floor, and are on pace to win it all.
Oklahoma (Bars): 48.525 - I'll be completely honest - I missed all of the Sooners bars routines, so I'll let the score do the talking.
Missouri (Beam): 48.700 - The Tigers almost had a fall or two, but some impressive saves keep them in the race for second.
Barring unprecedented disaster for the other three teams, Iowa State will not be a repeat Big 12 champion and need quite a bit to happen to ensure they don't finish last.
After three rotations, here's where we stand:
Nebraska: 147.150
Oklahoma: 146.500
Missouri: 146.450
Iowa State: 146.075
1. Jasmine Thompson - 9.675 - Good routine, but she's had better this year.
2. Katie Sweetin - 9.100 - She fell on her butt upon landing. Iowa State absolutely can't have any more mistakes.
3. Nikki Dilbert- 9.675 - Excellent vault. Just what Iowa State needed. Criminally low score.
4. Katie Lasher - 9.800 - Fantastic vault. ISU's best thus far.
5. Megan Barnes - 9.825 - Excellent vault, one of the meet's best thus far. She's only competing on vault tonight because she's still dealing with a back injury.
6. Janet Anson - 9.900 - Tremendous, tremendous, tremendous vault. The last three vaults have been outstanding.
Nebraska (Floor): 48.925 - The Huskers looked very strong on floor, and are on pace to win it all.
Oklahoma (Bars): 48.525 - I'll be completely honest - I missed all of the Sooners bars routines, so I'll let the score do the talking.
Missouri (Beam): 48.700 - The Tigers almost had a fall or two, but some impressive saves keep them in the race for second.
Barring unprecedented disaster for the other three teams, Iowa State will not be a repeat Big 12 champion and need quite a bit to happen to ensure they don't finish last.
After three rotations, here's where we stand:
Nebraska: 147.150
Oklahoma: 146.500
Missouri: 146.450
Iowa State: 146.075
Big 12's Second Rotation - Floor Exercise
Floor (Second Rotation) - 48.800 - Floor judging is extraordinarily tough tonight and it will be interesting to see how Nebraska and particularly Missouri fare with the judges. These routines were better than the scoring indicates, but this score ties for third-lowest floor score of the season.
1. Melanie Tham - 9.575 - Good routine, would have been great without a stumble forward upon landing the final pass.
2. Nikki Dilbert - 9.625 - Great routine, one of her best floor's this season. Way too low of a score.
3. Anna Robey - 9.700 - Fantastic routine, also probably her best this season and another score that's too low. Admittedly, however, the judges know much more about gymnastics than I do.
4. Jasmine Thompson - 9.800 - Excellent routine, even though she's not employing a poofy hairstyle as I discussed with her this week in practice. In practice, she didn't do anything with her hair and performed great. She said she was actually considering keeping her hair like that for Big 12's. Instead she goes the other extreme and has her hair twisted up in about 12 different spots.
5. Katie Sweetin - 9.800 - Excellent routine, also one of her best this year, which seems to be a recurring theme. If this receives less than a 9.800, than I'm speechless...and thankfully, I'm not.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Extraordinary routine, should have been a 9.9 or higher. This will be tough for any gymnast here to beat, even with the score.
Nebraska (Beam): 48.925 - Michele Zabawa fell off the beam, but her teammates came through for her.
Oklahoma (Vault): 48.975 - The Sooners struggled a bit on vault, but scored well.
Missouri (Bars): 48.850 - The Tigers continued to look very strong on their second event. Keep a close eye on them.
After two rotations, here's where we stand:
Nebraska: 98.225
Oklahoma: 97.925
Missouri: 97.750
Iowa State: 97.200
Iowa State needs their opponents to really struggle in the final two rotations in order to have a shot at third, much less win.
Sorry if I'm moving slower than normal. Things are a bit delayed due to having four teams going at once.
1. Melanie Tham - 9.575 - Good routine, would have been great without a stumble forward upon landing the final pass.
2. Nikki Dilbert - 9.625 - Great routine, one of her best floor's this season. Way too low of a score.
3. Anna Robey - 9.700 - Fantastic routine, also probably her best this season and another score that's too low. Admittedly, however, the judges know much more about gymnastics than I do.
4. Jasmine Thompson - 9.800 - Excellent routine, even though she's not employing a poofy hairstyle as I discussed with her this week in practice. In practice, she didn't do anything with her hair and performed great. She said she was actually considering keeping her hair like that for Big 12's. Instead she goes the other extreme and has her hair twisted up in about 12 different spots.
5. Katie Sweetin - 9.800 - Excellent routine, also one of her best this year, which seems to be a recurring theme. If this receives less than a 9.800, than I'm speechless...and thankfully, I'm not.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Extraordinary routine, should have been a 9.9 or higher. This will be tough for any gymnast here to beat, even with the score.
Nebraska (Beam): 48.925 - Michele Zabawa fell off the beam, but her teammates came through for her.
Oklahoma (Vault): 48.975 - The Sooners struggled a bit on vault, but scored well.
Missouri (Bars): 48.850 - The Tigers continued to look very strong on their second event. Keep a close eye on them.
After two rotations, here's where we stand:
Nebraska: 98.225
Oklahoma: 97.925
Missouri: 97.750
Iowa State: 97.200
Iowa State needs their opponents to really struggle in the final two rotations in order to have a shot at third, much less win.
Sorry if I'm moving slower than normal. Things are a bit delayed due to having four teams going at once.
Big 12's First Rotation - Beam
Beam (First rotation) - 48.400 - No other way to put - as a unit, Iowa State struggled here. This was similar to the beam's that haunted Iowa State during the middle of the season. Surprisingly, it was two of three seniors that struggled most. The Cyclones are currently in fourth.
1. Nikki Dilbert - 9.650 - Very good routine, but I don't know if it's her strongest this year. Still, very solid and only helps the Cyclones.
2. Jasmine Thompson - 9.725 - She almost fell on her first flip, but pulled off the most incredible save I've seen all year. I mean, it could possibly be a meet-saving save. Great routine.
3. Jade Kvach - 9.300 - She toppled off the beam mid-way through her routine. Unfortunate. Everything else was very technically sound, but the fall did too much damage to the score. Without the fall, it's a 9.8.
4. Katie Sweetin - 9.800 - Excellent routine. ISU really needed her to step up, and she certainly did.
5. Ashley Alden - 9.350 - Another meet-saving save here. If she would have fallen, it would have crushed Iowa State's chances of winning. Even having to save a fall, this was a decent routine, but the Cyclones needed more. Personally, I think her score was too low, but the judging is always tougher at the more important meets.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Excellent routine and really helps ISU's overall score.
Nebraska (Bars): 49.300 - Emily Parsons looked incredible. Fantastic dismount, one I haven't seen anyone else use all year. The rest of the Huskers looked great as well.
Oklahoma (Floor): 49.000 - The Sooners looked very dominate on floor. Very, very few mistakes.
Missouri (Vault): 48.900 - The Tigers looked very strong on vault. Impressively strong, to be honest. They're certainly in this thing as of now. Missouri's Tiger mascot uniform is ugly and needs to be updated.
1. Nikki Dilbert - 9.650 - Very good routine, but I don't know if it's her strongest this year. Still, very solid and only helps the Cyclones.
2. Jasmine Thompson - 9.725 - She almost fell on her first flip, but pulled off the most incredible save I've seen all year. I mean, it could possibly be a meet-saving save. Great routine.
3. Jade Kvach - 9.300 - She toppled off the beam mid-way through her routine. Unfortunate. Everything else was very technically sound, but the fall did too much damage to the score. Without the fall, it's a 9.8.
4. Katie Sweetin - 9.800 - Excellent routine. ISU really needed her to step up, and she certainly did.
5. Ashley Alden - 9.350 - Another meet-saving save here. If she would have fallen, it would have crushed Iowa State's chances of winning. Even having to save a fall, this was a decent routine, but the Cyclones needed more. Personally, I think her score was too low, but the judging is always tougher at the more important meets.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Excellent routine and really helps ISU's overall score.
Nebraska (Bars): 49.300 - Emily Parsons looked incredible. Fantastic dismount, one I haven't seen anyone else use all year. The rest of the Huskers looked great as well.
Oklahoma (Floor): 49.000 - The Sooners looked very dominate on floor. Very, very few mistakes.
Missouri (Vault): 48.900 - The Tigers looked very strong on vault. Impressively strong, to be honest. They're certainly in this thing as of now. Missouri's Tiger mascot uniform is ugly and needs to be updated.
Big 12 Championships - Storylines
A bunch of interesting storylines present here tonight:
- Can Iowa State defend it's Big 12 Championship win last year with a completely different squad?
- Can K.J. Kindler win two Big 12's in a row with two different teams?
- Can Missouri, the biggest underdog here, shock everyone and win before a home crowd?
Even on the individual side of things, Nebraska's Emily Parsons has been on an absolute tear this year - can she win three individual championships or will she be derailed by Janet Anson (ISU), Brittany Koncak-Schumann (OU) or Adrianne Perry (MU)?
We'll know in two hours.
See you after the first rotations,
Cody
- Can Iowa State defend it's Big 12 Championship win last year with a completely different squad?
- Can K.J. Kindler win two Big 12's in a row with two different teams?
- Can Missouri, the biggest underdog here, shock everyone and win before a home crowd?
Even on the individual side of things, Nebraska's Emily Parsons has been on an absolute tear this year - can she win three individual championships or will she be derailed by Janet Anson (ISU), Brittany Koncak-Schumann (OU) or Adrianne Perry (MU)?
We'll know in two hours.
See you after the first rotations,
Cody
Big 12 Championships - March 31st
Hi folks,
Here's Iowa State's lineup, as well as each team's rotation order:
Beam (First rotation) -
1. Nikki Dilbert -
2. Jasmine Thompson -
3. Jade Kvach -
4. Katie Sweetin -
5. Ashley Alden
6. Janet Anson -
Nebraska (Bars):
Oklahoma (Floor):
Missouri (Vault):
Floor (Second Rotation) -
1. Melanie Tham
2. Nikki Dilbert -
3. Anna Robey -
4. Jasmine Thompson -
5. Katie Sweetin -
6. Janet Anson -
Nebraska (Beam):
Oklahoma (Vault):
Missouri (Bars):
Vault (Third Rotation) -
1. Jasmine Thompson -
2. Katie Sweetin -
3. Nikki Dilbert-
4. Katie Lasher -
5. Megan Barnes -
6. Janet Anson -
Nebraska (Floor):
Oklahoma (Bars):
Missouri (Beam):
Bars (Fourth Rotation)
1. Ceilia Maccani
2. Melanie Tham
3. Jasmine Thompson
4. Nikki Dilbert
5. Katie Lasher
6. Janet Anson
Nebraska (Vault):
Oklahoma (Beam):
Missouri (Floor):
This is my first trip to the Hearnes Center and it's a very unique building. I really like the bowl shape of arena - should lead to great crowd acoustics. FSN's already started filming some intros to open the broadcast - it's odd to see national television being taped just five feet in front of me. I did see that Janet Anson filmed an interview prior to the meet. Hopefully I won't be shown on TV because I'm dealing with an awkward facial hair situation today - in my rush to leave this morning, I forget to quickly shave.
Everyone looked strong in warmups, though Iowa State did stuggle a bit on vault. The Cyclones finish on bars though, which is their strongest event based on RQS, so a very strong bars performance could potentially win it for Iowa State.
Should be an awesome meet. See you after the first rotation. I'll keep up with the other school's scores as best I can, but with all apparatus' being used at the same time, it's going to be fantastically hectic.
Here's Iowa State's lineup, as well as each team's rotation order:
Beam (First rotation) -
1. Nikki Dilbert -
2. Jasmine Thompson -
3. Jade Kvach -
4. Katie Sweetin -
5. Ashley Alden
6. Janet Anson -
Nebraska (Bars):
Oklahoma (Floor):
Missouri (Vault):
Floor (Second Rotation) -
1. Melanie Tham
2. Nikki Dilbert -
3. Anna Robey -
4. Jasmine Thompson -
5. Katie Sweetin -
6. Janet Anson -
Nebraska (Beam):
Oklahoma (Vault):
Missouri (Bars):
Vault (Third Rotation) -
1. Jasmine Thompson -
2. Katie Sweetin -
3. Nikki Dilbert-
4. Katie Lasher -
5. Megan Barnes -
6. Janet Anson -
Nebraska (Floor):
Oklahoma (Bars):
Missouri (Beam):
Bars (Fourth Rotation)
1. Ceilia Maccani
2. Melanie Tham
3. Jasmine Thompson
4. Nikki Dilbert
5. Katie Lasher
6. Janet Anson
Nebraska (Vault):
Oklahoma (Beam):
Missouri (Floor):
This is my first trip to the Hearnes Center and it's a very unique building. I really like the bowl shape of arena - should lead to great crowd acoustics. FSN's already started filming some intros to open the broadcast - it's odd to see national television being taped just five feet in front of me. I did see that Janet Anson filmed an interview prior to the meet. Hopefully I won't be shown on TV because I'm dealing with an awkward facial hair situation today - in my rush to leave this morning, I forget to quickly shave.
Everyone looked strong in warmups, though Iowa State did stuggle a bit on vault. The Cyclones finish on bars though, which is their strongest event based on RQS, so a very strong bars performance could potentially win it for Iowa State.
Should be an awesome meet. See you after the first rotation. I'll keep up with the other school's scores as best I can, but with all apparatus' being used at the same time, it's going to be fantastically hectic.
Saturday morning update - March 31
Hi folks,
Just a quick update before I leave for the Big 12 Gymnastics Championship in Columbia, Mo. Here's a link to my preview of the meet in Friday's Daily:
ISU gymnasts set to defend Big 12 Championship
I'll be blogging live during tonight's meet, so join me again then.
Thanks for reading,
Cody Saveraid
Just a quick update before I leave for the Big 12 Gymnastics Championship in Columbia, Mo. Here's a link to my preview of the meet in Friday's Daily:
ISU gymnasts set to defend Big 12 Championship
I'll be blogging live during tonight's meet, so join me again then.
Thanks for reading,
Cody Saveraid
Monday, March 26, 2007
Monday March 26 Update
Hi folks,
Here's a link to my article in today's Daily recapping Friday's meet: Sensational Seniors
Other interesting notes from Friday's Senior Night meet:
- Freshman Nikki Dilbert earned or tied season-highs in all four events and the all-around.
- Senior Janet Anson earned or tied three season-highs while winning all but one event.
- In total, six Cyclones combined to earn or tie 13 season-highs
- By defeating Iowa, Iowa State earned two more points in the Hy-Vee Cy-Hawk series. Though the Cyclones are still losing the overall series 11-8, Iowa State could still theoretically win with a softball victory and by earning two additional points for academics.
- Senior beam specialist Ashley Alden returned Friday after being out almost two months with an ankle injury. Her return performance was stronger than even she expected.
- Freshman vault dynamo Megan Barnes didn't participate in Friday's meet in order to rest nagging minor injuires. She is, however, expected to compete at Saturday's Big 12 Championship.
- Friday's attendance was 2,403
Iowa State's Senior Night scores
Vault - 49.150
Uneven Bars - 49.225
Balance Beam - 49.000
Floor Exercise - 49.325 - Season high
Total - 196.700 - Season high
Watching Friday's meet, it's clear the Cyclones have a new attitude and are re-motivated for the last half of the season. I'd hate to have to face them at Big 12 Championships or Regionals.
Thanks for reading. Also, Steve Kemp still has spots left for the Big 12 Championship bus trip this weekend, so make sure to contact him as soon as possible if interested.
Cody Saveraid
Friday, March 23, 2007
Senior Night - Final Rotation (Floor Exercise)
Iowa State is definitely having fun right now.
Floor (Fourth Rotation) - 49.325 - An awesome finish to a season high team score
1. Melanie Tham - 9.125 - Her routine was looking great, but she fell to her butt while landing her final pass.
2. Nikki Dilbert - 9.825 - Very good routine. Maybe I'm losing it, but I think she used a few new elements tonight. Regardless if they are old or new, they were effective.
3. Anna Robey - 9.725 - Her first pass was excellent. I actually thought she was going to lose it on her final pass, but she nailed it beautifully. Great performance.
4. Jasmine Thompson - 9.900 - The floor judge really enjoyed this routine as evident by her constant smile. It certainly was one of her best this year and the crowd gave her a huge ovation.
5. Katie Sweetin - 9.925 - Awesome routine. Without a doubt, this is the best floor I've seen her perform this season.
6. Janet Anson - 9.950 - ISU's best gymnast ever finishes her home meet career with one of her best floor routine's ever. If you're a 15-year-old gymnast not named Shawn Johnson, this is the routine you should be looking up to. She received a loud standing ovation.
Denver finished with a 49.125 on bars and Iowa finished with a 48.625 on vault.
Final score: Iowa State - 196.750 - season high
Denver - 195.700
Iowa - 194.450
The night finished with a wonderful video tribute to the seniors, featuring photos of all four of them at different stages of their lives. Lots of photos of them when they were young gymnasts.
Thanks for joining me. I'll be blogging live from next weekend's Big 12 Championship, so join me then.
Thanks for reading,
Cody
Floor (Fourth Rotation) - 49.325 - An awesome finish to a season high team score
1. Melanie Tham - 9.125 - Her routine was looking great, but she fell to her butt while landing her final pass.
2. Nikki Dilbert - 9.825 - Very good routine. Maybe I'm losing it, but I think she used a few new elements tonight. Regardless if they are old or new, they were effective.
3. Anna Robey - 9.725 - Her first pass was excellent. I actually thought she was going to lose it on her final pass, but she nailed it beautifully. Great performance.
4. Jasmine Thompson - 9.900 - The floor judge really enjoyed this routine as evident by her constant smile. It certainly was one of her best this year and the crowd gave her a huge ovation.
5. Katie Sweetin - 9.925 - Awesome routine. Without a doubt, this is the best floor I've seen her perform this season.
6. Janet Anson - 9.950 - ISU's best gymnast ever finishes her home meet career with one of her best floor routine's ever. If you're a 15-year-old gymnast not named Shawn Johnson, this is the routine you should be looking up to. She received a loud standing ovation.
Denver finished with a 49.125 on bars and Iowa finished with a 48.625 on vault.
Final score: Iowa State - 196.750 - season high
Denver - 195.700
Iowa - 194.450
The night finished with a wonderful video tribute to the seniors, featuring photos of all four of them at different stages of their lives. Lots of photos of them when they were young gymnasts.
Thanks for joining me. I'll be blogging live from next weekend's Big 12 Championship, so join me then.
Thanks for reading,
Cody
Senior Night - Third Rotation (Beam)
Beam (Third rotation) - 49.000 -This is the beam ISU has been wanting for over a month
1. Nikki Dilbert - 9.775 - Excellent routine. She's struggled on beam recently, so her smile upon landing says it all.
2. Jasmine Thompson - 9.750. Another great routine, including a nice fall save.
3. Jade Kvach - 9.850 - Tremendous routine, perhaps her best of the year.
4. Katie Sweetin - 9.200 - This was shaping up to be one of her best of the year, but she took a fall after completing a series of flips in the middle of her return. The dismount looked great, but I think this score will be thrown out.
5. Ashley Alden - 9.750 - After three backflips, she definitely looks recovered. A really impressive return to competition.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Excellent routine. A fantastic end to the first solid team beam in a about a month.
Exhibition - Melanie Tham - Great routine. Both exhibitions have looked great tonight.
Denver earned a 48.850 on vault and Iowa took a 49.075 on floor. Denver is struggling a bit - I honestly wonder if they are affected by the change in altitude? I know it's a Colorado sports team cliche, but you have to wonder, especially considering how well they've scored the past few meets.
One of the Denver coaches was strongly arguing his case to the meet referee following vault. He isn't happy with one of the scores.
After three rotations, it's:
Iowa State - 147.425
Denver - 146.475
Iowa - 145.875
The crowd is loudly chanting "ISU" now.
It's safe to say Iowa State already has this one wrapped up. They have been dominant tonight and they've certainly needed a performance like this. They haven't had all 49's all season, so hopefully I'm not jinxing them by mentioning it now.
1. Nikki Dilbert - 9.775 - Excellent routine. She's struggled on beam recently, so her smile upon landing says it all.
2. Jasmine Thompson - 9.750. Another great routine, including a nice fall save.
3. Jade Kvach - 9.850 - Tremendous routine, perhaps her best of the year.
4. Katie Sweetin - 9.200 - This was shaping up to be one of her best of the year, but she took a fall after completing a series of flips in the middle of her return. The dismount looked great, but I think this score will be thrown out.
5. Ashley Alden - 9.750 - After three backflips, she definitely looks recovered. A really impressive return to competition.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Excellent routine. A fantastic end to the first solid team beam in a about a month.
Exhibition - Melanie Tham - Great routine. Both exhibitions have looked great tonight.
Denver earned a 48.850 on vault and Iowa took a 49.075 on floor. Denver is struggling a bit - I honestly wonder if they are affected by the change in altitude? I know it's a Colorado sports team cliche, but you have to wonder, especially considering how well they've scored the past few meets.
One of the Denver coaches was strongly arguing his case to the meet referee following vault. He isn't happy with one of the scores.
After three rotations, it's:
Iowa State - 147.425
Denver - 146.475
Iowa - 145.875
The crowd is loudly chanting "ISU" now.
It's safe to say Iowa State already has this one wrapped up. They have been dominant tonight and they've certainly needed a performance like this. They haven't had all 49's all season, so hopefully I'm not jinxing them by mentioning it now.
Senior Night - Second Rotation (Bars)
Bars (Second Rotation) - 49.275 - Wow, they tore it up tonight
1. Ceilia Maccani - 9.800 - Great routine. Sadly I missed her usually fantastic Tkatchev (the move where she jumps really high off the bar) because a couple Denver gymnasts walked in front of me. It happens.
2. Melanie Tham - 9.675 - Very good routine. She hopped a bit upon landing, but she did a very nice job considering she's not normally in the bars lineup.
3. Jasmine Thompson- Awesome, awesome, awesome. Probably the best landing I've seen on bars this year.
4. Nikki Dilbert - 9.850 - Just tremendous. Iowa State is closing in on another 49.
5. Katie Lasher - 9.850 - Another fantastic routine. She could have extended a handstand or two but otherwise, this was great. She has been working a more difficult dismount in practice, but she didn't use it here tonight. Better safe than sorry at this point in the season.
6. Janet Anson - 9.900 - This was great. Not her best of the year, but still a great routine.
Exhibition - Jen Hornbaker - In the interest of full disclosure, during the fall, Jen actually worked as a copy editor at the Daily, so I've been friends with her since before the season began. A walk-on, she's been working really, really hard in practice, even staying late on occasion. So, to watch her nail this routine, her first routine at a college meet, as well as she did has to rank up with my favorite gymnastics moments of the year. She's very critical of herself, so I believe this is the first time I've seen her smile after finishing a routine all season. I didn't see the actual a score for her routine, but I'm giving her a 10 based on how much she put into reaching this moment. By the way - she's very good at editing articles and has saved stupid errors on our part on more than one occasion.
Denver took a 48.800 on floor and Iowa earned a 48.450 on beam. It looks like they're showing Iowa on the video feed much more than Denver - is this correct? I understand the Cy-Hawk series is important, but from a gymnastics fan standpoint, the people who are actually watching the feed on Cyclones.com are probably more interested in the Denver-Iowa State match up. Am I correct to think this?
After two rotations, here's how it looks:
Iowa State - 98.425
Denver - 97.575
Iowa - 96.750
1. Ceilia Maccani - 9.800 - Great routine. Sadly I missed her usually fantastic Tkatchev (the move where she jumps really high off the bar) because a couple Denver gymnasts walked in front of me. It happens.
2. Melanie Tham - 9.675 - Very good routine. She hopped a bit upon landing, but she did a very nice job considering she's not normally in the bars lineup.
3. Jasmine Thompson- Awesome, awesome, awesome. Probably the best landing I've seen on bars this year.
4. Nikki Dilbert - 9.850 - Just tremendous. Iowa State is closing in on another 49.
5. Katie Lasher - 9.850 - Another fantastic routine. She could have extended a handstand or two but otherwise, this was great. She has been working a more difficult dismount in practice, but she didn't use it here tonight. Better safe than sorry at this point in the season.
6. Janet Anson - 9.900 - This was great. Not her best of the year, but still a great routine.
Exhibition - Jen Hornbaker - In the interest of full disclosure, during the fall, Jen actually worked as a copy editor at the Daily, so I've been friends with her since before the season began. A walk-on, she's been working really, really hard in practice, even staying late on occasion. So, to watch her nail this routine, her first routine at a college meet, as well as she did has to rank up with my favorite gymnastics moments of the year. She's very critical of herself, so I believe this is the first time I've seen her smile after finishing a routine all season. I didn't see the actual a score for her routine, but I'm giving her a 10 based on how much she put into reaching this moment. By the way - she's very good at editing articles and has saved stupid errors on our part on more than one occasion.
Denver took a 48.800 on floor and Iowa earned a 48.450 on beam. It looks like they're showing Iowa on the video feed much more than Denver - is this correct? I understand the Cy-Hawk series is important, but from a gymnastics fan standpoint, the people who are actually watching the feed on Cyclones.com are probably more interested in the Denver-Iowa State match up. Am I correct to think this?
After two rotations, here's how it looks:
Iowa State - 98.425
Denver - 97.575
Iowa - 96.750
Senior Night - First Rotation (Vault)
Vault (First Rotation) - 49.150 - Excellent routines all around. An explosive start and the crowd is definitely up for the meet now.
1. Jasmine Thompson - 9.950- Fantastic start. Beautiful rotation and not a hint of a step on the landing. She totally stuck it. Her fan sitting behind me is going nuts. I attribute part of her success to the short pigtails hairstyle she's using tonight.
2. Katie Sweetin - 9.800- Another tremendous vault with the second totally stuck landing of the night
3. Jenn Salfen - 9.775 - Very good vault with just a short step on the landing. This is her first time competing for Iowa State (she's done exhibition before) and she made a good debut. She's a super nice gal and has worked very hard in practice all season. Her goal for the year was to compete on vault so I'm really happy that she had a chance to compete before the season ended.
4. Nikki Dilbert- 9.800 - Great vault, with good landing.
5. Katie Lasher - 9.725 - Excellent vault. She looked like she was about to fall and amazingly stayed on her feet without taking a step. The recovery was the most impressive part of this routine.
6. Janet Anson- 9.925 - Wow....this was spectacular. Near perfect.
Anna Robey really is just an alternate and didn't compete an exhibition routine.
Denver took a 48.775 on beam and Iowa earned a 48.300 on bars to start the meet.
1. Jasmine Thompson - 9.950- Fantastic start. Beautiful rotation and not a hint of a step on the landing. She totally stuck it. Her fan sitting behind me is going nuts. I attribute part of her success to the short pigtails hairstyle she's using tonight.
2. Katie Sweetin - 9.800- Another tremendous vault with the second totally stuck landing of the night
3. Jenn Salfen - 9.775 - Very good vault with just a short step on the landing. This is her first time competing for Iowa State (she's done exhibition before) and she made a good debut. She's a super nice gal and has worked very hard in practice all season. Her goal for the year was to compete on vault so I'm really happy that she had a chance to compete before the season ended.
4. Nikki Dilbert- 9.800 - Great vault, with good landing.
5. Katie Lasher - 9.725 - Excellent vault. She looked like she was about to fall and amazingly stayed on her feet without taking a step. The recovery was the most impressive part of this routine.
6. Janet Anson- 9.925 - Wow....this was spectacular. Near perfect.
Anna Robey really is just an alternate and didn't compete an exhibition routine.
Denver took a 48.775 on beam and Iowa earned a 48.300 on bars to start the meet.
Senior Night - Entrances and other pre-meet tidbits
Before entrances even started, they started playing the Eagles "Hotel California." See, now that's a good song. Plus, when you hear it in an arena, you start to believe there's a chance Vitali Klitschko is coming out for a rematch with Lennox Lewis for the heavyweight title. Yes, I realize there's a chance no one reading this will understand that reference, but I enjoyed it.
Hooray, the fog machine finally worked perfectly! Last time's a charm, I guess.
Tonight is Greek Night, meaning all fraternity and sorority memebers get in free. Problem is, many fraternities are holding spring initiations tonight, so there's actually fewer Greeks here onight than usual. That's unfortunate, but there's still a good-sized crowd here.
The four seniors - Ashley Alden, Janet Anson, Jade Kvach, and Katie Lasher received a special, well-deserved extended entrance.
Mary Ronayne, Director of Gymnastic Operations, just sang a stunning rendition of the National Anthem. Seriously, it was really impressive. She could go on the road and make some bucks covering Celine Dion songs.
A male fan behind me has a serious crush on Jasmine Thompson. The meet hasn't even started yet and I've heard "Yeah, Jasmine!" about five times.
See you after the first rotation for real this time,
Cody
Hooray, the fog machine finally worked perfectly! Last time's a charm, I guess.
Tonight is Greek Night, meaning all fraternity and sorority memebers get in free. Problem is, many fraternities are holding spring initiations tonight, so there's actually fewer Greeks here onight than usual. That's unfortunate, but there's still a good-sized crowd here.
The four seniors - Ashley Alden, Janet Anson, Jade Kvach, and Katie Lasher received a special, well-deserved extended entrance.
Mary Ronayne, Director of Gymnastic Operations, just sang a stunning rendition of the National Anthem. Seriously, it was really impressive. She could go on the road and make some bucks covering Celine Dion songs.
A male fan behind me has a serious crush on Jasmine Thompson. The meet hasn't even started yet and I've heard "Yeah, Jasmine!" about five times.
See you after the first rotation for real this time,
Cody
Senior Night vs. Denver and Iowa- Warmups
My ears are currently being attacked by a terrible hip hop song featuring a siren blaring in the background while a singer repeatedly sings "Chicken Noodle Soup..Chicken Noodle Soup." I'm only 22 years old, but I must already be too old for current popular music. What do I know though...I legitimately enjoy 80's hard rock and hair metal. The scary thing is that about five ISU gymnasts knew the dance to the song...
Anyway, warmups are going really well for all three teams and entrances are about to begin. I think they've doubled up on the number of plants and balloons scattered around the arena. Why plants? I've never understood it myself. If someone knows, please let me know.
Here's tonight's ISU lineups. Because Megan Barnes is sitting this one out to rest an accumulation of minor injuries, we have some happily unique lineups tonight. Senior Ashley Alden also makes her return from injury tonight on beam. Being fifth in the rotation after two months of not competing shows that the ISU coaches have a lot of confidence in her.
Also, I'll be sure to comment on tonight's alternates - a reader pointed out that I've failed to comment on them much in the past and I definitely don't want to leave anyone out.
Vault (First Rotation) - -
1. Jasmine Thompson - -
2. Katie Sweetin - -
3. Jenn Salfen - -
4. Nikki Dilbert- -
5. Katie Lasher - -
6. Janet Anson - -
Alternate - Anna Robey -
Bars (Second Rotation) -
1. Ceilia Maccani -
2. Melanie Tham - -
3. Jasmine Thompson
4. Nikki Dilbert -
5. Katie Lasher -
6. Janet Anson -
Alternate - Jen Hornbaker -
Beam (Third rotation) -
1. Nikki Dilbert -
2. Jasmine Thompson -
3. Jade Kvach -
4. Katie Sweetin -
5. Ashley Alden -
6. Janet Anson -
Alternate - Melanie Tham
Floor (Fourth Rotation) -
1. Melanie Tham -
2. Nikki Dilbert -
3. Anna Robey -
4. Jasmine Thompson -
5. Katie Sweetin
6. Janet Anson -
By the way, be sure to sign up for the bus trip if you can. Details to the right.
See you after the first rotation. I might be really wordy tonight, but I have a number of antecdotes to give out tonight. Plus, it's my last home meet too and it definitely feels like a special night.
Thanks for joining me,
Cody
Anyway, warmups are going really well for all three teams and entrances are about to begin. I think they've doubled up on the number of plants and balloons scattered around the arena. Why plants? I've never understood it myself. If someone knows, please let me know.
Here's tonight's ISU lineups. Because Megan Barnes is sitting this one out to rest an accumulation of minor injuries, we have some happily unique lineups tonight. Senior Ashley Alden also makes her return from injury tonight on beam. Being fifth in the rotation after two months of not competing shows that the ISU coaches have a lot of confidence in her.
Also, I'll be sure to comment on tonight's alternates - a reader pointed out that I've failed to comment on them much in the past and I definitely don't want to leave anyone out.
Vault (First Rotation) - -
1. Jasmine Thompson - -
2. Katie Sweetin - -
3. Jenn Salfen - -
4. Nikki Dilbert- -
5. Katie Lasher - -
6. Janet Anson - -
Alternate - Anna Robey -
Bars (Second Rotation) -
1. Ceilia Maccani -
2. Melanie Tham - -
3. Jasmine Thompson
4. Nikki Dilbert -
5. Katie Lasher -
6. Janet Anson -
Alternate - Jen Hornbaker -
Beam (Third rotation) -
1. Nikki Dilbert -
2. Jasmine Thompson -
3. Jade Kvach -
4. Katie Sweetin -
5. Ashley Alden -
6. Janet Anson -
Alternate - Melanie Tham
Floor (Fourth Rotation) -
1. Melanie Tham -
2. Nikki Dilbert -
3. Anna Robey -
4. Jasmine Thompson -
5. Katie Sweetin
6. Janet Anson -
By the way, be sure to sign up for the bus trip if you can. Details to the right.
See you after the first rotation. I might be really wordy tonight, but I have a number of antecdotes to give out tonight. Plus, it's my last home meet too and it definitely feels like a special night.
Thanks for joining me,
Cody
Friday morning March 23 update - includes link to latest article
Hi gang,
Here's the gymnastics article I wrote for today's Daily: Senior Farewell
As usual, I will be blogging live during the meet tonight, so be sure to join me for what should be a unique Senior Night. A number of promotions and fan contests have been organized for tonight's meet, more than I can ever remember happening at one ISU home meet, so it should be a fun night.
Thanks for reading this brief update,
Cody Saveraid
Here's the gymnastics article I wrote for today's Daily: Senior Farewell
As usual, I will be blogging live during the meet tonight, so be sure to join me for what should be a unique Senior Night. A number of promotions and fan contests have been organized for tonight's meet, more than I can ever remember happening at one ISU home meet, so it should be a fun night.
Thanks for reading this brief update,
Cody Saveraid
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
First spring football practices open to fans and gymnastics welcomes the Greek community
Hi folks,
Here's all the info from Cyclones.com:
"Iowa State's first two 2007 spring football practices are open to Iowa State fans and media. The practices are Wednesday and Thursday and will start at 7 p.m. in the Steve and Debbie Bergstrom Indoor Training Facility."
In previous years, I can't remember the first days of Spring practice being open to the public. It should be an interesting experience for both fans and players.
Also, this Friday's final home gymnastics meet has been designated as Greek Night. Here's all the details courtesy of Iowa State's wonderful gymnastics media contact:
"The Iowa State gymnastics meet on Friday, March 23 has been designated as Greek Night. Admission is free for members wearing letters and all Greeks in attendance can sign up for prizes and participate in contests. Fraternity men can sign up to win two roundtrip tickets to Las Vegas courtesy of Allegiant Air and sorority women can register to win a diamond necklace courtesy of Ames Silversmithing. Contests include a Student Travel Association (STA) trivia game where four people will win $50 travel vouchers curtsey of STA. Many other smaller prizes will also be given away."
Along with that, it's Senior Night and I'm betting there's some nice things planned for the four senior gymnasts.
Thanks for reading,
Cody Saveraid
Here's all the info from Cyclones.com:
"Iowa State's first two 2007 spring football practices are open to Iowa State fans and media. The practices are Wednesday and Thursday and will start at 7 p.m. in the Steve and Debbie Bergstrom Indoor Training Facility."
In previous years, I can't remember the first days of Spring practice being open to the public. It should be an interesting experience for both fans and players.
Also, this Friday's final home gymnastics meet has been designated as Greek Night. Here's all the details courtesy of Iowa State's wonderful gymnastics media contact:
"The Iowa State gymnastics meet on Friday, March 23 has been designated as Greek Night. Admission is free for members wearing letters and all Greeks in attendance can sign up for prizes and participate in contests. Fraternity men can sign up to win two roundtrip tickets to Las Vegas courtesy of Allegiant Air and sorority women can register to win a diamond necklace courtesy of Ames Silversmithing. Contests include a Student Travel Association (STA) trivia game where four people will win $50 travel vouchers curtsey of STA. Many other smaller prizes will also be given away."
Along with that, it's Senior Night and I'm betting there's some nice things planned for the four senior gymnasts.
Thanks for reading,
Cody Saveraid
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
ISU men's basketball player Mike Taylor arrested
Here's the latest update about Taylor's Monday night arrest, including details about a previously unreported arrest this past summer.
ISU men's basketball star arrested, suspended indefinitely from team
ISU men's basketball star arrested, suspended indefinitely from team
Tuesday March 20 update
Hi folks,
Hope you've all had a chance to contact Steve Kemp about the bus trip to the Big 12 Gymnastics Championship in two weekends. If not, you can reach him at sjkemp62@msn.com. For further details, read Monday's post.
After taking a few days off over Spring Break, the gymnasts looked really refreshed in practice yesterday and were executing routines very well. It looks like Megan Barnes won't be competing this weekend. She doesn't have any serious injuries, but she's collected a few minor ones along the way and the coaches just want to give her a break. In good news, senior beam specialist Ashley Alden is expected to be in action this weekend after missing much of the season with an ankle injury. The team has struggled on beam recently, so Alden's return could be the key to an improved team score. Before her injury, she was ranked 8th in the nation on beam.
In some unfortunate news unrelated to gymnastics, it's been reported that ISU basketball player Mike Taylor was arrested on Monday night. We'll have more details on the Daily's Web site later tonight and in tomorrow's Daily.
I'll update again when I can. Wednesday looks like it will be very busy day for me.
Thanks for reading,
Cody
Hope you've all had a chance to contact Steve Kemp about the bus trip to the Big 12 Gymnastics Championship in two weekends. If not, you can reach him at sjkemp62@msn.com. For further details, read Monday's post.
After taking a few days off over Spring Break, the gymnasts looked really refreshed in practice yesterday and were executing routines very well. It looks like Megan Barnes won't be competing this weekend. She doesn't have any serious injuries, but she's collected a few minor ones along the way and the coaches just want to give her a break. In good news, senior beam specialist Ashley Alden is expected to be in action this weekend after missing much of the season with an ankle injury. The team has struggled on beam recently, so Alden's return could be the key to an improved team score. Before her injury, she was ranked 8th in the nation on beam.
In some unfortunate news unrelated to gymnastics, it's been reported that ISU basketball player Mike Taylor was arrested on Monday night. We'll have more details on the Daily's Web site later tonight and in tomorrow's Daily.
I'll update again when I can. Wednesday looks like it will be very busy day for me.
Thanks for reading,
Cody
Monday, March 19, 2007
Monday March 19 Update - Includes Big 12 Bus Trip details
Long time, no type to everyone,
I won't have a new article in the Daily about the gymnastics team until Friday, but I was able to write a very brief recap of the Nebraska meet in today's paper. The blurb was too small to make it on the site, but here's what it said:
"Fifteenth-ranked Iowa State gymnastics’ recent struggles on balance beam continued in a 196.500-195.450 loss to No. 5 Nebraska on March 11. The Cyclones posted a 48.500 on beam, its lowest event score of the meet. In the past four meets, Iowa State has averaged a 48.469 on beam, compared to a 48.910 average the first five meets of the season."
Compiling those beam averages brought even more interesting results than I expected. By the way, the rankings hadn't been released at press time, so Iowa State's current ranking is No. 17, with Nebraska at No. 7. Interesting of note is that Denver is now ranked 16th. Denver and Iowa travel to Ames this Friday for Iowa State's last home meet of the year, which is also Senior Night.
In other news, the Big 12 Championships are March 31 in Columbia, Mo. One of my loyal readers, Steve Kemp, is organizing a bus trip down to Missouri for fans. Here's some more details direct from Steve:
"The cost is just $45 per person. Contact us right away to reserve your spot. Payments must be made by March 24th (there will be a table in the Hilton south foyer before and after the meet).
The bus will leave from the ISU campus on Saturday morning, make a stop for a meal, and arrive at the stadium by 6pm for the 7pm meet. Tickets are not included, but we also have $8 reserved seat tickets on sale for a special ISU section. We will return shortly after the meet and arrive back in Ames early Sunday morning.
Please let me know right away if you are interested so that I can reserve your spot. It is first come/first served. Contact Steve Kemp by email Sjkemp62@msn.com or phone 515/450-7713. Go Cyclones!"
I might actually be riding down on the bus myself as long as there is enough interest to make the trip by bus.
Finally, the sixth-seeded ISU women's basketball team plays in the second round of the NCAA tournament today against third-seeded Georgia. The game will be shown live on ESPN2 at 6:00 p.m. tonight. Should be a great game.
Thanks for reading,
Cody
I won't have a new article in the Daily about the gymnastics team until Friday, but I was able to write a very brief recap of the Nebraska meet in today's paper. The blurb was too small to make it on the site, but here's what it said:
"Fifteenth-ranked Iowa State gymnastics’ recent struggles on balance beam continued in a 196.500-195.450 loss to No. 5 Nebraska on March 11. The Cyclones posted a 48.500 on beam, its lowest event score of the meet. In the past four meets, Iowa State has averaged a 48.469 on beam, compared to a 48.910 average the first five meets of the season."
Compiling those beam averages brought even more interesting results than I expected. By the way, the rankings hadn't been released at press time, so Iowa State's current ranking is No. 17, with Nebraska at No. 7. Interesting of note is that Denver is now ranked 16th. Denver and Iowa travel to Ames this Friday for Iowa State's last home meet of the year, which is also Senior Night.
In other news, the Big 12 Championships are March 31 in Columbia, Mo. One of my loyal readers, Steve Kemp, is organizing a bus trip down to Missouri for fans. Here's some more details direct from Steve:
"The cost is just $45 per person. Contact us right away to reserve your spot. Payments must be made by March 24th (there will be a table in the Hilton south foyer before and after the meet).
The bus will leave from the ISU campus on Saturday morning, make a stop for a meal, and arrive at the stadium by 6pm for the 7pm meet. Tickets are not included, but we also have $8 reserved seat tickets on sale for a special ISU section. We will return shortly after the meet and arrive back in Ames early Sunday morning.
Please let me know right away if you are interested so that I can reserve your spot. It is first come/first served. Contact Steve Kemp by email Sjkemp62@msn.com or phone 515/450-7713. Go Cyclones!"
I might actually be riding down on the bus myself as long as there is enough interest to make the trip by bus.
Finally, the sixth-seeded ISU women's basketball team plays in the second round of the NCAA tournament today against third-seeded Georgia. The game will be shown live on ESPN2 at 6:00 p.m. tonight. Should be a great game.
Thanks for reading,
Cody
Friday, March 9, 2007
Friday March 9 Update - includes link to latest article
Good morning gang. I'm just as surprised as anyone that I'm already up 7 a.m., especially considering I don't have class until 10 today.
Here's a link to the newest gymnastics article in today's Daily:
Cyclones hope to get back on track against Nebraska
Just a reminder: Unfortunately, I won't be making the trip to Nebraska on Sunday for the ISU-Nebraska meet, so I won't be able to provide live blog coverage. Live stats should be available on Cyclones.com
How about the ISU women's basketball team? Beating Nebraska in an overtime thriller two days ago and then beating No. 1 seed Texas A&M last night. They face a Courtney Paris-led Oklahoma team in the Big 12 finals, and with ISU's momentum, I think they have as good a shot as any team of beating the Sooners. The game starts Saturday at 6 p.m. and you can follow all the action live at Pat Brown's blog, www.isdeic.blogspot.com . Pat has a number of interesting insights from the week in Oklahoma City, so check it out.
It's too bad the men's team couldn't win at least one game. I'm already looking forward to next year though. On paper, the recruiting class we have coming in could be one of the best we've ever had.
This photo of Wesley Johnson taken by Daily photographer Ross LaDue after the game certainly paints the picture.
Check back throughout Spring Break (next week) in case I decide to post. I'm sure I will. Obviously, with the school on Spring Break, the Daily won't be publishing next week so I won't have another article for about a week-and-a-half.
Thanks for reading,
Cody Saveraid
Here's a link to the newest gymnastics article in today's Daily:
Cyclones hope to get back on track against Nebraska
Just a reminder: Unfortunately, I won't be making the trip to Nebraska on Sunday for the ISU-Nebraska meet, so I won't be able to provide live blog coverage. Live stats should be available on Cyclones.com
How about the ISU women's basketball team? Beating Nebraska in an overtime thriller two days ago and then beating No. 1 seed Texas A&M last night. They face a Courtney Paris-led Oklahoma team in the Big 12 finals, and with ISU's momentum, I think they have as good a shot as any team of beating the Sooners. The game starts Saturday at 6 p.m. and you can follow all the action live at Pat Brown's blog, www.isdeic.blogspot.com . Pat has a number of interesting insights from the week in Oklahoma City, so check it out.
It's too bad the men's team couldn't win at least one game. I'm already looking forward to next year though. On paper, the recruiting class we have coming in could be one of the best we've ever had.
This photo of Wesley Johnson taken by Daily photographer Ross LaDue after the game certainly paints the picture.
Check back throughout Spring Break (next week) in case I decide to post. I'm sure I will. Obviously, with the school on Spring Break, the Daily won't be publishing next week so I won't have another article for about a week-and-a-half.
Thanks for reading,
Cody Saveraid
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Wednesday March 7 update - includes great photos and fixed gymnastics spread links
Hi folks,
I just realized I forgot to post a link here to Monday's recap article. I assume all of you were smart enough to find it on the Daily's site yourself, but here's a link simply because I told you all I would post it:
Early struggles in meet set pace for heartbreaking loss to Minnesota
Check out this amazing photo of Katie Lasher that ran with the story. It's poster material:
I'm sure Katie is happy that we finally made up for this photo of her falling on bars early last season:
Katie really hates this photo, so I'm sure if she finds out I posted it here, I'll hear about it next time I see her in practice.
On the topic of great gymnastics photos taken by Daily photographers, here's a fantastic shot of Janet Anson taken earlier this season. No joke — this is one of the best gymnastics action shots I've ever seen:
I'll post more great shots as the year continues. Do you have any links to other great gymnastics photos taken around the country? Post a link to them in the comments if you'd like. I'd love to share examples of good photography from around the nation with the photographers that work here.
Some other quick notes:
— I won't be able to attend this Sunday's Iowa State-Nebraska meet, so the only live coverage available will be live stats on Cyclones.com. I'm sorry I won't be there to provide quirky details and "expert" analysis.
— It's been been brought to my attention that the link to Page 2 of the ISU gymnastics spread I posted last week doesn't work on the Web site. Here's fixed links to both pages of the spread. Both pages are PDF files:
ISU Gymnastics spread page 1
ISU Gymnastics spread page 2
The reason the Page 2 link doesn't work on the Daily's site is because a ".com" was removed from the address. It should be fixed shortly, but if you need it, just refer to this blog post. It works best to print it off on 11x17 paper; It's scrunched on regular 8.5x11 paper.
— It's also been brought to my attention that some of the readers of this blog have attempted to e-mail me. I haven't received any e-mails on my end, but for future reference, you can e-mail me at isdsports@gmail.com. I'd love to hear your thoughts!
— Finally, for those of you that also follow ISU basketball, the Daily's own Pat Brown is blogging live from the women's and men's Big 12 basketball tournaments in Oklahoma City. Here's a link to his blog:
Pat Brown's live basketball coverage
I'll post a permanent link to the list on right for easier access.
Thanks for reading this far down. Today's entry was a long one, so I give you a virtual gold star for making it this far.
Cody Saveraid
I just realized I forgot to post a link here to Monday's recap article. I assume all of you were smart enough to find it on the Daily's site yourself, but here's a link simply because I told you all I would post it:
Early struggles in meet set pace for heartbreaking loss to Minnesota
Check out this amazing photo of Katie Lasher that ran with the story. It's poster material:
I'm sure Katie is happy that we finally made up for this photo of her falling on bars early last season:
Katie really hates this photo, so I'm sure if she finds out I posted it here, I'll hear about it next time I see her in practice.
On the topic of great gymnastics photos taken by Daily photographers, here's a fantastic shot of Janet Anson taken earlier this season. No joke — this is one of the best gymnastics action shots I've ever seen:
I'll post more great shots as the year continues. Do you have any links to other great gymnastics photos taken around the country? Post a link to them in the comments if you'd like. I'd love to share examples of good photography from around the nation with the photographers that work here.
Some other quick notes:
— I won't be able to attend this Sunday's Iowa State-Nebraska meet, so the only live coverage available will be live stats on Cyclones.com. I'm sorry I won't be there to provide quirky details and "expert" analysis.
— It's been been brought to my attention that the link to Page 2 of the ISU gymnastics spread I posted last week doesn't work on the Web site. Here's fixed links to both pages of the spread. Both pages are PDF files:
ISU Gymnastics spread page 1
ISU Gymnastics spread page 2
The reason the Page 2 link doesn't work on the Daily's site is because a ".com" was removed from the address. It should be fixed shortly, but if you need it, just refer to this blog post. It works best to print it off on 11x17 paper; It's scrunched on regular 8.5x11 paper.
— It's also been brought to my attention that some of the readers of this blog have attempted to e-mail me. I haven't received any e-mails on my end, but for future reference, you can e-mail me at isdsports@gmail.com. I'd love to hear your thoughts!
— Finally, for those of you that also follow ISU basketball, the Daily's own Pat Brown is blogging live from the women's and men's Big 12 basketball tournaments in Oklahoma City. Here's a link to his blog:
Pat Brown's live basketball coverage
I'll post a permanent link to the list on right for easier access.
Thanks for reading this far down. Today's entry was a long one, so I give you a virtual gold star for making it this far.
Cody Saveraid
Sunday, March 4, 2007
ISU-Iowa-Minnesota Final Rotation
Vault (Fourth Rotation) - 49.925 - Good vaults, but not good enough to overtake Minnesota's lead
1. Jasmine Thompson - 9.875 - Great start on vault for the Cyclones
2. Katie Sweetin - 9.775 - Excellent vault.
3. Nikki Dilbert- - Great rotation, sloppy landing
4. Katie Lasher - 9.800 - Great rotation, funny hop on landing.
5. Megan Barnes - 9.900 - Spectacular vault. This was awesome.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Great rotation. She approached to hard, however, and took a momentum step upon landing.
Iowa earned a 48.950 on floor and Minnesota earned a 48.725 on bars to finish the meet. Minnesota takes the upset victory by just .25.
Final score: Iowa State - 195.325
Iowa - 194.275
Minnesota - 195.350
Thanks for following my coverage. Sorry I was as detailed as usually... I had to be more mobile than usual today. Check back tomorrow for a link to my article in Monday's Daily.
1. Jasmine Thompson - 9.875 - Great start on vault for the Cyclones
2. Katie Sweetin - 9.775 - Excellent vault.
3. Nikki Dilbert- - Great rotation, sloppy landing
4. Katie Lasher - 9.800 - Great rotation, funny hop on landing.
5. Megan Barnes - 9.900 - Spectacular vault. This was awesome.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Great rotation. She approached to hard, however, and took a momentum step upon landing.
Iowa earned a 48.950 on floor and Minnesota earned a 48.725 on bars to finish the meet. Minnesota takes the upset victory by just .25.
Final score: Iowa State - 195.325
Iowa - 194.275
Minnesota - 195.350
Thanks for following my coverage. Sorry I was as detailed as usually... I had to be more mobile than usual today. Check back tomorrow for a link to my article in Monday's Daily.
ISU-Iowa-Minnesota Third Rotation
I wish Minnesota and Iowa wouldn't have worn almost-matching black uniforms. Hard to keep track of which team is on which event without checking the rotation lineup.
Floor (Third Rotation) - 49.075 - Iowa State looked much, much better and made up some ground.
1. Megan Barnes - 9.800 - Excellent routine.
2. Nikki Dilbert - 9.650 - Very good routine.
3. Melanie Tham - 9.800 - Another very good routine. Iowa State should really gain some ground on floor.
4. Jasmine Thompson - 9.425 - Took a awkward fall on her ankle on her first pass. She finished the routine without any sign of injury though.
5. Katie Sweetin 9.900 - Awesome routine. Her floor improves by leaps and bounds each meet. The pun was certainly intended.
6. Janet Anson - 9.925 - Another awesome routine. Great finish to floor for the Cyclones.
Iowa earned a 48.775 on beam. Minnesota earned a 48.900 on vault.
After three rotations:
Iowa State - 146.100
Iowa - 145.325
Minnesota - 146.675
Iowa State finishes on vault.
Floor (Third Rotation) - 49.075 - Iowa State looked much, much better and made up some ground.
1. Megan Barnes - 9.800 - Excellent routine.
2. Nikki Dilbert - 9.650 - Very good routine.
3. Melanie Tham - 9.800 - Another very good routine. Iowa State should really gain some ground on floor.
4. Jasmine Thompson - 9.425 - Took a awkward fall on her ankle on her first pass. She finished the routine without any sign of injury though.
5. Katie Sweetin 9.900 - Awesome routine. Her floor improves by leaps and bounds each meet. The pun was certainly intended.
6. Janet Anson - 9.925 - Another awesome routine. Great finish to floor for the Cyclones.
Iowa earned a 48.775 on beam. Minnesota earned a 48.900 on vault.
After three rotations:
Iowa State - 146.100
Iowa - 145.325
Minnesota - 146.675
Iowa State finishes on vault.
ISU-Iowa-Minnesota Second Rotation
A score was recorded incorrectly after the first rotation. Minnesotat actually held the lead after the first rotation by earning a 48.725 on beam.
Beam (Second rotation) - 48.350 - Iowa State had to count a fall.
1. Megan Barnes - 9.775 - Great routine to start beam.
2. Melanie Tham - 9.600 - Good routine. She did a nice job of saving a fall near the beginning.
3. Nikki Dilbert - 9.125 - Took an unfortunate fall.
4. Katie Sweetin - 9.825 - Fantastic, perhaps her best all year.
5. Jade Kvach - 9.275 - Iowa State's second fall off beam, meaning they have to count a fall.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Awesome routine. The Cyclones definitely needed it.
Iowa earned a 48.800 on bars. Minnesota earned a 49.050 on floor.
After two rotations, Minnesota surprisingly leads by a good margin.
Iowa State - 97.025
Iowa - 96.550
Minnesota - 97.725
See you after Iowa State's floor
Beam (Second rotation) - 48.350 - Iowa State had to count a fall.
1. Megan Barnes - 9.775 - Great routine to start beam.
2. Melanie Tham - 9.600 - Good routine. She did a nice job of saving a fall near the beginning.
3. Nikki Dilbert - 9.125 - Took an unfortunate fall.
4. Katie Sweetin - 9.825 - Fantastic, perhaps her best all year.
5. Jade Kvach - 9.275 - Iowa State's second fall off beam, meaning they have to count a fall.
6. Janet Anson - 9.875 - Awesome routine. The Cyclones definitely needed it.
Iowa earned a 48.800 on bars. Minnesota earned a 49.050 on floor.
After two rotations, Minnesota surprisingly leads by a good margin.
Iowa State - 97.025
Iowa - 96.550
Minnesota - 97.725
See you after Iowa State's floor
Iowa State-Iowa-Minnesota First Rotation
To give you an idea of how glamorous gymnastics journalism is, I'm currently sitting in the bleachers, surrounded by a group of grils scouts and parents. Iowa's press row is a six feet long table that really only has enough space for each school's sports information directors. Plus, it's located in a corner of the arena where you can't even see bars or vault, so I wouldn't be able to give any coverage besides scores. The group around me is full of nice people though, so it's not too bad.
Bars (First Rotation) - 48.675
1. Megan Barnes - 9.650 - Awesome start. Totally stuck the landing. Could have extended better on her handstands, but she still should have had a higher score.
2. Jasmine Thompson - 9.300 - This was shaping up to be her best bars routine of the year, but she took a fall onto her back after landing her dismount. Really unfortunate.
3. Nikki Dilbert - 9.800 - Great routine, but to be honest, I missed some this because of how much is going on. What I saw was really good.
4. Ceilia Maccani - 9.750 - Good routine, but she's had better this year.
5. Katie Lasher - 9.700 - Great performance. She's been on a roll lately.
6. Janet Anson - 9.775 - Fantastic routine, but very slight step on landing. Shouldn't hurt her score too badly.
Melanie Tham took a hard fall during her exhibition routine. She appears to be OK, however, and finished her routine strong.
Iowa earned a 47.750 on vault due to a number of girls taking hard falls. Minnesota earned a 48.050 on beam.
Up next for the Cyclones is beam.
Bars (First Rotation) - 48.675
1. Megan Barnes - 9.650 - Awesome start. Totally stuck the landing. Could have extended better on her handstands, but she still should have had a higher score.
2. Jasmine Thompson - 9.300 - This was shaping up to be her best bars routine of the year, but she took a fall onto her back after landing her dismount. Really unfortunate.
3. Nikki Dilbert - 9.800 - Great routine, but to be honest, I missed some this because of how much is going on. What I saw was really good.
4. Ceilia Maccani - 9.750 - Good routine, but she's had better this year.
5. Katie Lasher - 9.700 - Great performance. She's been on a roll lately.
6. Janet Anson - 9.775 - Fantastic routine, but very slight step on landing. Shouldn't hurt her score too badly.
Melanie Tham took a hard fall during her exhibition routine. She appears to be OK, however, and finished her routine strong.
Iowa earned a 47.750 on vault due to a number of girls taking hard falls. Minnesota earned a 48.050 on beam.
Up next for the Cyclones is beam.
Mar. 4 - Iowa State vs. Iowa and Minnesota -Warmups
Hi folks,
With the weather troubles finally cleared up, Minnesota finally made it down to Iowa - just a different location than originally planned. After Friday's Minnesota-Iowa State meet in Ames was cancelled, Minnesota was added to the bill in Iowa City today, making this a triangular meet.
By the way, to give you an idea of how bad the wetaher was in Iowa on Thursday and Friday, I drove past a whopping 70 cars in the ditch during the 2 1/2 hour drive from Ames to Iowa City. I counted every single car. 53 of them were in the half-hour drive from Ames to the interstate mixmaster north of Des Moines.
Iowa uses a funky setup for its meets, but it looks functional. For gymnastics meets, Iowa sections of part of its Field House, which is primary rec center for students on campus and also home of Iowa's pool. For those of you in Ames, it would be like holding a meet on the center turf of the Lied Rec Center.
As far as warmups go, all three teams have struggled on beam, so it will be interesting to see how the scores shake out.
I'll be back after the first rotation,
Cody
With the weather troubles finally cleared up, Minnesota finally made it down to Iowa - just a different location than originally planned. After Friday's Minnesota-Iowa State meet in Ames was cancelled, Minnesota was added to the bill in Iowa City today, making this a triangular meet.
By the way, to give you an idea of how bad the wetaher was in Iowa on Thursday and Friday, I drove past a whopping 70 cars in the ditch during the 2 1/2 hour drive from Ames to Iowa City. I counted every single car. 53 of them were in the half-hour drive from Ames to the interstate mixmaster north of Des Moines.
Iowa uses a funky setup for its meets, but it looks functional. For gymnastics meets, Iowa sections of part of its Field House, which is primary rec center for students on campus and also home of Iowa's pool. For those of you in Ames, it would be like holding a meet on the center turf of the Lied Rec Center.
As far as warmups go, all three teams have struggled on beam, so it will be interesting to see how the scores shake out.
I'll be back after the first rotation,
Cody
Thursday, March 1, 2007
ISU-Minnesota gymnastics meet cancelled
Due to the terrible weather conditions in both Ames and Minnesota, Friday's ISU-Minnesota gymnastics meet has been cancelled. I spoke to coach Jay Ronayne on the phone today and he is unsure at this time whether the meet will be rescheduled.
Iowa State cancelled classes this afternoon. In my four years at ISU, I believe this is the first time class has been cancelled for any reason. Because of the rain, the ground is very wet and sidewalks are covered in puddles. It's also been snowing pretty hard for the past few hours and isn't expected to stop. Thankfully, it's not cold enough yet to freeze, but once darkness comes it should turn really bad outside. I've heard that Interstate 35 from Ames to Minneapolis is closed and Interstate 80 west of Des Moines has been shut down as well.
If weather permits, I'm planing on traveling to Iowa City on Sunday for the ISU-Iowa gymnastics meet at 2 p.m. If I go, I'll be providing live coverage in this blog.
Hope you enjoy the two-page spread in today's Daily (see my previously entry below):
Stay safe in the ice and snow,
Cody Saveraid
Iowa State cancelled classes this afternoon. In my four years at ISU, I believe this is the first time class has been cancelled for any reason. Because of the rain, the ground is very wet and sidewalks are covered in puddles. It's also been snowing pretty hard for the past few hours and isn't expected to stop. Thankfully, it's not cold enough yet to freeze, but once darkness comes it should turn really bad outside. I've heard that Interstate 35 from Ames to Minneapolis is closed and Interstate 80 west of Des Moines has been shut down as well.
If weather permits, I'm planing on traveling to Iowa City on Sunday for the ISU-Iowa gymnastics meet at 2 p.m. If I go, I'll be providing live coverage in this blog.
Hope you enjoy the two-page spread in today's Daily (see my previously entry below):
Stay safe in the ice and snow,
Cody Saveraid
Thursday March 1 Update - includes link to ISU gymnastics spread
Hi folks,
Thursday's Daily features perhaps the coolest piece of gymnastics journalism I've ever worked on - a two-page spread educating readers on ISU gymnastics and the sport of gymnastics. Here's a link to the Daily's site, where you can find a PDF version of each page:
ISU Gymnastics - a comprehensive guide
If you have a chance, pick up a copy of today's Daily because seeing the spread on a computer doesn't do it complete justice. For those of you wanting to print the pages off, it works best to print it onto 11 x 17 paper. The text is pretty scrunched when you print it off on regular-sized printer paper.
Hope you enjoy the spread. Join me here again Friday night for live coverage of the Iowa State-Minnesota meet.
Thanks for reading,
Cody Saveraid
Thursday's Daily features perhaps the coolest piece of gymnastics journalism I've ever worked on - a two-page spread educating readers on ISU gymnastics and the sport of gymnastics. Here's a link to the Daily's site, where you can find a PDF version of each page:
ISU Gymnastics - a comprehensive guide
If you have a chance, pick up a copy of today's Daily because seeing the spread on a computer doesn't do it complete justice. For those of you wanting to print the pages off, it works best to print it onto 11 x 17 paper. The text is pretty scrunched when you print it off on regular-sized printer paper.
Hope you enjoy the spread. Join me here again Friday night for live coverage of the Iowa State-Minnesota meet.
Thanks for reading,
Cody Saveraid
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